Go-Go's release new recordings

At the turn of the century, the road to rock 'n' roll comeback comes via the cathode confessional of VH1's "Behind the Music."

So it happened for the Go-Go's, the first all-female rock band that crashed the charts in the '80s and crashed just about as fast.

"I thought we were just like our peers," said Gina Schock, 43, who as drummer provided the unerring beat to "We Got the Beat." "Everybody was doing what we were doing. There was nothing extraordinary about drug use or indiscriminate sex occasionally.

"All bands have these problems, if they're together for any length of time," she said from Los Angeles.

"You try to be married to four other women for 20 years. In any relationship, you're going to have issues. Nobody's perfect. We're human. No one professes to be perfect. We all have imperfections. And they tend to come out when you're under a lot of stress," Schock said.

And the Go-Go's, unaccustomed to arena level platinum success after years of being a joke on the L.A. club level, imploded after two disappointing follow-ups to 1981's "Beauty and the Beat."

"What you didn't see on 'Behind the Music' was we had a lot of fun," Schock said.

"During all that time, there was obviously more joy than sorrow. Or we wouldn't have stayed together."

Or come back.

Last week, the Go-Go's released "God Bless the Go-Go's" (Beyond), their first full album of new material since "Talk Show" 17 years ago.

Older, wiser, still cute, the band echoes the glory days of its first album with smart songs that acknowledge their place today.

"This record sounds like we really sound live," Schock said. "We've been trying to capture that for years. And this is the first time we sounded the way we should."

Having essentially broken up in 1985, the group has returned for a few reunion tours - in 1990 to promote the hits collection "Greatest"; in 1994 to promote "Return to the Valley of the Go-Go's"; and in 1998 for no reason.

"When we first got together, we thought nobody was going to come, we didn't have any new product," Schock said. "But then all the shows were sold out. We thought, 'Sheesh! People are still interested in us.' "

And on stage, the performers, who had all performed in one way or another in the interim (the most prominent being Carlisle's successful solo career) were better than ever.

"It was all there again. It was obvious," Schock said. "We were primed."

They spent a year writing songs together and with outsiders: the Bangles' Susanna Hoffs, That Dog's Anna Waronker and Green Day's Billy Joe Armstrong.

"It's taken time, and everybody obviously has matured," she said. "But it's been good, in a way, to be apart - so we could grow as individuals and not be stuck to one another. So as harsh as it may have seemed at the time, the breakup was probably a good thing. It gave each person a chance to grow on a personal level, and to grow as artists."

Being older means it's not as easy to tour as it was 20 years ago. They exercise to maintain stamina on stage.

More significantly, she added, "a couple of girls have kids, and that's a big thing. But of course, the rest of us are incredibly understanding," she said. "We don't have a problem with one of girls saying, 'I can't tour two or three months straight, I'm going to take my child to the first day of school.' What are you going to say to that? I totally agree with that."

Besides performing the new songs from "God Bless the Go-Go's," such as the track "Unforgiven" (currently charting on Adult Top 40 charts), Schock said, "We're choosing several songs from every record" for the tour. "And obviously we'll play songs that were big if people want to hear them."

That means "Our Lips Are Sealed," "Vacation," "Head Over Heels" and "We Got the Beat," no matter how many times they played them 20 years ago.

"The truth is, as much of a pain as it is to play some of those in rehearsal, when you get in front of an audience you get energized, and it feels great," Schock said.

"I'm not sure what public perception will be," Schock said. "Maybe they'll still approach us as a novelty, I don't know."

But by now, she doesn't care.

"We've been around for a long time and we have nothing to prove to anyone. We feel grateful and lucky to have something together that none of us individually can create."